Bravo Is Right to Edit Russell Armstrong Out of 'RHOBH'

It's official. Bravo has decided to re-edit footage from the upcoming season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in light of the recent suicide of Russell Armstrong. The start date, September 5, is the same.

It remains unclear if Russell is going to be eliminated from the show completely, or if his role will simply be minimized. If it was up to his disgusting, fame-hungry family, he'll be edited out entirely -- and so will his ex-wife, Taylor, and their daughter, Kennedy. (And somehow they'll manage to make money off of everything.) If it were up to me ... er, I dunno. I sort of see both sides. But I'm mostly leaning with Bravo. And I guess, begrudgingly, with Russell's family.

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But before I get into it, I just need to get this out -- again. Please, Russell's family (and now, e-cig smoker extraordinaire, Allison DuBois), stop trying to make money off of this! It's really disconcerting. When, not that long ago, I lost a close family member of mine, the last thing on earth I wanted to do was talk to other people. I don't understand how all of you -- relatives near and far -- can continue to talk to the media about your own blood's tragic death. I mean, I just heard that Russell's nephew appeared on Good Morning America earlier in the week, for crying out loud. Nihilo sanc­tum estne?

As far as Bravo's decision to edit Russell out of the show -- completely or otherwise -- I sort of agree with them. I mean, I understand that it takes a lot of the "reality" out of reality TV, but, seriously, does anyone believe these shows are legitimate anymore?

Seeing Russell on TV would be sort of creepy to those close to him. Especially since part of season two obviously focuses on the turmoil he and Taylor were going through. No doubt, it would be a terribly painful thing for Taylor to watch. Then there's also the issue of Bravo technically making money off of Russell's image. I'm sure RHOBH viewership already is going to skyrocket this season (which means more cash from advertisers), but seeing shampoo and detergent commercials in between scenes containing him would just be crass.

I hope that Taylor can eventually find peace from this whole mess. And I think avoiding having to relive the end of their tumultuous relationship on TV is a step in the right direction.